I have heard of thermostats that you can install that have a minimum temperature setting (say, 50 or 55 degrees F) to automatically turn on the heat even if the tenant doesn't have the heater on, and we'd like to put those in to prevent frozen pipes. 

The release form would prevent that. 

I just removed a tenant from another property that was there for 15 months without paying rent, because Vegas' non-evict order prevented me from booting them (it expired on June 1).

I urge us to stand together to:End the Squatters Scam: Implement measures that prevent abuse of the system.Protect Homeowners and Small Landlords: Ensure fairness and justice for all parties involved.Streamline Legal Processes: Expedite eviction proceedings without compromising due process.Advocate for Transparency: Shed light on the impact of these delays on hardworking taxpayers.Senator, your support and advocacy can make a significant difference.

The house needs a roof and the existing roof is very old asphalt over cedar shake so according to the roofers they need to completely remove everything down to the rafters and install 5/8th inch plywood then reroof from there (one estimate so far came in at $31k for that).  

The combination of Al wire and an FPE panel is especially concerning because Al wire is more likely to have a loose connection that will overheat to a temp that can cause combustion, and the FPE panel has a high chance of not tripping when that happens in order to prevent that overheating from continuing.

Is there anything that would prevent me from refinancing using a vacation home loan now? 

I’d think you need a lawyer for the real answer but I can give advice on how to prevent this in the future.Did you have a lawyer create a custom lease for you or did you find one online?

A good buyer's agent would have prevented all of the above (good being the operative word).

Fox 5 news reported on this in September 2022:https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/court-backlog-prevents-clayton-county-landlords-from-evicting-tenantsMy tenants ceased paying rent in August 2022.